


Mythic Prep

by maybe_mythical



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Teachers, Link is a new teacher, M/M, Mutual Pining, Rhett is a Dean, au where they didn't grow up together, sexual harassment but not really
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-07-08
Packaged: 2019-05-31 02:52:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15110330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maybe_mythical/pseuds/maybe_mythical
Summary: Link is ready to begin his first year teaching at a behavioral high school in Los Angeles, Mythic Prep. As if that wasn't daunting enough, his Dean of Students seems to have it out for him. Link's determined to change his opinion of him and have a great school year, no matter what.





	1. The First Day

Link smiled hopefully at the large brick building in front of him. After a year of substitute teaching, applying, and interviewing at schools all over the Los Angeles area, he finally landed a job at Mythic Prep, a well known school for children with behavior problems. It wasn’t Link’s first choice of schools, he’d much rather a local public school, or a progressive independent school, anything else really, but unfortunately there appeared to be a shortage of teaching jobs and he was ready to just take what he could get. He was dressed to impress in charcoal slacks held up with a black belt and a plaid black, white and grey button down that was rolled up to his elbows. It was an outfit that was too warm for the summer day, but all he wanted to do was make a good first impression. The sweat that was beading at his forehead wasn’t only from the sun, but from the first day jitters coursing through his body.

He carried a red milk crate that he had “borrowed” from a school he subbed at which was filled with supplies for his classroom. Colorful borders were neatly rolled and secured with rubber bands, die cut letters which were laminated and sorted alphabetically, and his books on pedagogy and content were arranged by topic and author’s last name. He was nothing if not organized and often prided himself in his somewhat compulsive type a personality. It was most often what principals he had worked for complimented about him, however they still didn’t land him with a job.

“You coming or what?” A deep voice reminiscent of dark chocolate came from in front of him and shook him out of his thoughts. His eyes ventured over to the direction of the noise to find a man who was even taller than himself holding the door with one hand and a large iced coffee with the other. He was dressed casually, as it was only orientation for the teachers, but still looked stunning to Link in olive green shorts and a white short sleeve button down dotted with a cactus print. 

Link had left his home in North Carolina because of the feelings he was having right now. Homosexuality was still a sin to most of his very southern family, and while his parents both assured him they loved him no matter what, he figured a larger city with more open minded people was a place to get a fresh start, free of judgement and thoughts of him going to hell because of who he loved. Straight from high school he packed up all his things in search of the west coast and a different life. He spent his years at UCLA studying education, pouring himself into his course work and student teaching. He only returned home for holidays, spending as little time there as possible. He called his mother nightly, always appreciating the love and support she had given him, but unable to truly feel at home when he was physically there. Too many memories of a past filled with hushed voices that condemned him as he would walk by. 

He had dated some in college but always made excuses why things wouldn’t work out, usually something to do with how busy he was. He was still getting comfortable with his life being completely out as a gay man, and longed for love and companionship, but unsure of how to find it without going back to Grindr or another online dating service. The one time he attempted to use it he deleted his account after the 12th unsolicited dick pic. Not knowing what else to do, and not being sure who he could turn to, he privately decided to just put his career first for now and love life on the back burner. Simple. 

Except that now if felt way less simple as felt sudden butterflies just from looking at the man by the door. The extremely good looking tall blond man by the door. Who was waiting for him to move from the spot he was rooted in. ‘Legs, movement, come on,’ he hissed to himself. He blushed slightly and mumbled an apology as he jogged up the few steps to enter the building. In his haste, his foot caught on the top step and he tripped, spilling the contents of his crate along the sidewalk. 

The larger man chuckled, suppressing a fuller laugh. “You pull that in front of the kids they won’t ever let you forget it,” he said with a smirk, but bent down to help Link pick up his things. “It’ll be much worse than ‘Have a nice trip, see you next fall’” and he released the laugh he had been suppressing, clearly enjoying his own “dad joke”, although the man couldn’t have been much older than Link himself. 

“I’m sure I’ll make a much better impression on them, hopefully there just aren’t any stairs in my classroom,” Link responded, not sounding entirely sure of himself. ‘And no gorgeous men,’ his mind could help but add on. “I’m Link Neal, I’ll be teaching 10th grade math. How about yourself?” Link attempted to make small talk to hide his embarrassment.

“Not in the classroom anymore, brother. I’m the Dean of Students, must have missed your interview. Essentially I handle all the discipline at the school,” the man replied. Link swore he saw something flash in his eyes on the word discipline, but he blamed it on the bright August sun. “I’m Rhett, but you’ll get to know me mostly as Dean McLaughlin, it’s what the kids call me anyway. Been here the last six years, seen a lot of teachers coming and going in my time,” he paused and ran his green eyes up and down Link, making him feel much smaller than he actually was at six feet tall. “First year teaching?” He finished, tone shifting slightly from casual to condescending.

“No, I mean yes, kind of? I subbed for a year, but this is my first year with my own class, but I’ve taught in plenty of schools, I know my stuff,” Link knew this man would be his supervisor, and he blamed wanting to impress him on that alone, but truthfully he just wanted the handsome man in front of him to like him, to approve of him. He wanted those eyes that were searching him to come back with some kind of validation. He felt a redness come to his cheeks and he looked down to organizing his things to try and hide it from Rhett, searching for something else to say and coming up empty.

“Yeah, you’ll be bringing me kids a whole lot,” Rhett said, shortly but with a small laugh. Link followed him into the building, trying to process what was happening. Why did it seem like this man already had it out for him? Already thought he was going to screw this all up and day 1 hadn’t even officially began. ‘I should have listened to my mom when she told me not to work at a behavioral school,’ he scolded himself. Link had put all of himself into his education degree, all his heart and soul and just wanted desperately to become a teacher. To be “Mr. Neal” and make a difference. He had thought about this opportunity so brightly but now his confidence was completely shaken and he had a sense of unease. 

“Welcome to paradise,” Rhett said, in a somewhat sarcastic tone as they entered the cafeteria, joining the group of teachers who were jovially chatting about their summers. Link took a seat at the end of one of the long white tables that was mostly unoccupied, heart in his throat, waiting for the day to officially begin and for his confidence to return.

The rest of his morning was less eventful. They went through silly ice breakers that were described to him as being team building activities. He listened to names, grade levels taught and fun facts about each one of the large staff. He tried desperately to remember some names, but there was just too much to take in all at once. The only sense of relief that he had was that everyone seemed instantly kinder to him than Dean McLaughlin had been. Even when he tripped over his words in his introduction, claiming that he’s from North Carolina and spent his tobaccos as a kid summer farming, everyone laughed with him, allowed him to correct himself and then clapped for him as he finished. Maybe this year wouldn’t be so bad, especially if he kept with the teachers that continued to make eye contact with him from across the circle and offer him warm smiles which radiated kindness and support. 

He did take note that Rhett’s fun fact was that he spent a week hiking and camping over the summer, both hobbies that Link enjoyed as well and he decided that he would try and build a better relationship with the man using that shared interest. He was able to quiet the shouts of ‘why do you care what he thinks,’ that bounced around his mind by simply blaming it on wanting his supervisor to like him. That it would make his job and life at the school easier. Link knew deep down that it was because he wanted his supervisor to like him. He wanted his supervisor to drag him right out of the rut his love life was stuck in and shove him right down on his bed and- 

He shook his head to clear his mind. It’s not the time to think about this he admonished himself. He turned his focus back to the circle where Principal Levine had brought everyone back together. 

“I’m not going to lie to our new teachers. Sometimes, our kids can be a lot. We have to remember that they’re here because no one else will take them. They have no other place to go. I’m sure most of us have felt that way at some time or another,” she began, vehemently. Her speech was met with many nods of the head and punctuated with the occasional “yeah!” from the crowd. “We’re the last safety net and the last shot that most of them have to graduate high school. It’s a lot of work. It’s a lot of long days that turn into nights where you can’t stop thinking about them. It’s the responsibility of knowing that some of our kids are here to avoid juvenile detention centers, some even prison. We’re here to save these kids lives, right here in this building. Remember, we’re in this together. Remember how important each and every one of you are. And thank you all, for listening and for what I’m sure will be a monumentally successful school year!” Her impassioned speech was met with cheers from her staff and Link felt an immediate affinity for the woman who had hired him, only a few short weeks ago. 

They received their room assignments and were given time to go explore their classrooms. Link looked inside of room 351 and smiled. 25 desks were gathered into the middle of the room, a result of what must have been summer cleaning. The front wall was lined with whiteboards and a projector right in the middle. Bookshelves were against the half wall just below the windows, which offered a surprising amount of natural light into the room, giving it a cheery atmosphere. Closest to the door he had a phone and a couple of smaller tables, what he understood to be for small group work. Finally directly across from him was the teacher’s desk, where he immediately headed to put his things down. He began imagining how he would decorate his room, what he would put on his desk, what his kids would be like. He smiled contently. ‘Maybe this year is going to be ok after all.’

He looked up and back out the door and made eye contact with the person opening the door of the smaller room that was across the hall. Large windows in the doors that were there for the kids and adults safety made it so that he could see the hallway completely clearly. He felt his stomach flip and blood rush to his ears when he saw that he would be spending his year directly across from that man who both terrified and intrigued him, Dean McLaughlin.


	2. Setting Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link meets other teachers, learns some more about Dean McLaughlin, and gets to begin classroom setup.

The week seemed to fly by, even though most time was spent with what felt like trivial matters like onboarding, Human Resources meetings, and professional development sessions which already felt redundant. Link was starting to allow himself to feel the range of emotions that tugged at him. Excitement, anxiety, and passion all coursed through his veins, unable to control completely which was taking over him at the time. 

Dean McLaughlin wasn’t helping to calm his nerves in any way. In one professional development session, which focused on the framework that the school would be using to write unit and lesson plans, they counted off to make small groups. When he heard “four” escape from the tall man’s lips, Link felt weak. He was a four also. Together. They would have to spend the rest of the morning, together. 

Luckily, there were two other teachers in the group, for which Link was extremely grateful. Chase, the 11th grade social studies teacher and Ellie, the schools art teacher joyfully chatted and contributed ideas. “I think I’m most excited for my cartography project this year! Students are going to have the opportunity to study a country they choose and create their own maps,” Chase chatted excitedly in response to their prompt; What are you most looking forward to this year. Ellie shared the various art projects that she wanted to do with her students, Link only half listening. He was more focused on Rhett. His blond hair, so meticulously styled and extending his stature by an additional two inches. The way he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms across his chest. The way he seemed to exude confidence in an atmosphere that made Link feel insecure and small. How does he do it? Link felt the question rattle in his brain, completely intimidated and completely infatuated all at the same time. 

“How about you, Link?” A kind voice shook him out of his own thoughts. He was appreciative of Ellie and Chase. They smiled with him as he began talking about teaching linear equations with multiple variables. “I’m really hopeful that we can get to a point where the kids are able to figure out the parabolic equation for the arch that was formed after they hit a baseball and then are able to use that to graph it,” Link’s blue eyes brightened. This was his passion. Math and numbers always flowed naturally for him. Equations were his poetry. When penning calculus, he was Robert Frost. 

When he was in school, his teachers encouraged him to be an engineer. They told him that he had a mind for numbers and problem solving, and his attention to detail would certainly make him exquisite in this endeavor. Though he loved numbers, he knew deeply that he dreamed of more. He always considered himself somewhat of an entertainer as well, loving to be a performer, the center of attention. Once someone mentioned to him in passing “the closest job to acting is teaching” and it all clicked and become painfully obvious what he wanted to spend his life doing. 

He was ripped from his reverie, “We’re trying to keep our kids from rounding third base, as much as we can help it,” snickered Rhett. His joke was followed by a small chuckle from Chase and Ellie. Link felt his cheeks glow, the physical manifestation of the embarrassment that twisted in his gut. 

“You having trouble rounding home plate there, pal?” Chase replied with a small laugh. Link was immensely thankful for his new coworkers quick wit. Rhett responded with raised eyebrows and pursed lips. His wide green-gray eyes burning into Chase in a look that screamed “yeah, right”. Link was glad to have the attention off of him and back to the prompt at hand. “I guess I’m looking forward to seeing this skinny guy hitting home runs out there,” Rhett continued his now lighter and more playful laugh. One that unexpectedly hit Link in the chest with the entrancing lilt of the man’s voice. Another unexpected hit was the “love lick” Rhett landed on his shoulder as he spoke. 

Though the touch was brief, it electrified Link’s whole body. His heart raced. A chill ran down his spine. His breath hitched, which he prayed was left unnoticed. He prayed even harder that no one noticed when he shifted in his seat, desperate to hide any sign of the arousal he was starting to feel in his pants. As he shot a glance over to Rhett, he noticed the bearded man shift as well. He couldn’t possibly be experiencing the same thing, could he? Link resigned himself to minimizing his contributions to the conversation for the rest of the session, fearing another quip at his expense, another encounter, another touch. 

When lunch rolled around, Link sat with Chase and Ellie, both of whom he was glad to consider to be his newest work friends. As he ate his peanut butter sandwich, the conversation shifted to what Link had already been thinking about, Dean McLaughlin. “I don’t know, guys. Seems like he’s already got it out for me and I’m not sure why,” Link commented softly, fearing what would happen when the words escaped his lips. As if saying them aloud made them more true than they did when they simply existed within his own head. Link put down his food and started wringing his hands slightly while his legs began to shake. He wished that he didn’t show his discomfort so much externally, but hoped his newfound friends would be understanding. 

“He wasn’t always so grouchy. Not until his boyfriend left,” said Ellie, not shy about her volume and emphasis. Chase admonished her with a “Shhhh” but Link was glued to her, feeling the hairs on her back of his neck prickle and stand up, his whole body desperate to know more. “W-what?” Link sputtered. He had hoped to be more eloquent, however with all of the thoughts flying around in his brain, even being able to say one small word felt like a victory. 

“Alright, alright,” Ellie settled her voice to a whisper, “It was three years ago, he and the gym teacher had been so close for so long. Seemingly best friends. Inseparable. Until they weren’t. And until the rumors started. That Dean McLaughlin had tried to kiss him and he tried to get him fired for sexual harassment. They did a whole investigation, and apparently since it happened off of school grounds and when the kiss was refused McLaughlin stopped, they only gave him a slap in the wrist since he wasn’t technically his supervisor. The gym teacher quit at the end of the year. Ever since, Dean McLaughlin has really kept his distance from everyone. It’s kinda sad, really.”

A new wave of conflicted emotions washed over Link. Hearing sexual harassment next to Rhett’s name was puzzling. Sure, he had been kind of a jerk to Link, but he never seemed to be predatory in any way. Plus, if they were so close why would there be this sudden allegation? Was this all staff gossip? How much was true? The quick fire questioning that had erupted in his mind was completely dizzying. He didn’t know what to say, what to think. 

Chase took pity on him, “What I think Ellie is trying to say here, is that he seems to be going through some trust issues. Once you get to know him, he’s really not such a bad guy. Just a little rough around the edges. And also someone who is on the leadership team and maybe we shouldn’t be discussing his personal life.” He closed the topic very firmly. Although this was understandable, Link was still craving more. More information, details, anything else about Rhett. None of this scared him off the way that he felt like it should. It just left him continuing to want to know more about the tall man. 

The rest of the week rolled on, and Link continued to only have minor exchanges with Rhett. Mostly small jokes at his expense, but Link was getting better at responding and laughing them off. There were even a few times were the back and forth began to feel like normal banter. Friendly, even. Hope sprang into Link’s heart. Maybe things would be alright after all. 

By Friday, he was thrilled to hear they were going to start having time to work in their classrooms each day. He figured this would give him the opportunity to settle himself. To make his classroom start to feel like home. He worked diligently and efficiently through the room, arranging student desks, organizing his books on the shelves, and decorating the bulletin boards that lined the walls with colorful paper and borders. The largest board was on the back wall and he needed to stand on a chair to reach the very top. He smoothed orange paper over it, stapling across the top and the close edge. He grabbed his scissors and began to run them along the far edge, cutting the paper to size. As he got to the middle of the board his hand slipped, sliding across his left hand, which had been holding the rest of the paper down. 

Deep crimson began to flow from the cut that now bubbled up on his hand. “Oh, gosh,” was all he could say before the world began to get fuzzy around him and fade. Before he knew what was happening, he was flying, free and down, down into blackness. 

“Shit, Neal, you alright?” 

The fuzz began to fade, words began to register and make sense again. Link slowly opened his eyes, realizing that he was in his classroom, but no longer standing on the chair. Instead, he was on the floor, wrapped up in Rhett. “W-what happened?” Link’s voice shook. 

“I was coming in to ask if you needed help and saw you slice yourself pretty bad. I feel like people in your life should have warned you about not using sharp objects, if that display was typical. But then I saw you were starting to fall, so I ran over and…” Rhett ended his sentence with a small gesture to the current situation that they were in. Suddenly Link was painfully aware that he was essentially in Rhett’s lap. Clearly Rhett had attempted to catch him from the chair, and they had both gone to the ground, Link landing across Rhett’s thighs. Rhett’s arms were around Link, holding him in a sitting up position, one hand on the small of his back, the other on Link’s left hand, inches from the cut that seemed to have already stopped bleeding. 

Link believed his cheeks much have matched the crimson that had oozed from his wound. Flashes of Rhett’s hands dancing across the rest of his body lit up Link’s thoughts. He desperately craved Rhett to lower the hand on his back, to cup his ass and pull him closer. To lock eyes and draw their faces closer and closer until their lips touching would be inevitable. That was the best word to describe everything he thought of between the two of them. Inevitable. 

He turned his head to face Rhett, and though his thick beard covered a decent amount of his face, a mild blush had settled on his high cheekbones. Link attempted a laugh, and then stood up. He was like a newborn giraffe, legs shaking, stumbling until he finally gripped a students desk. 

Rhett stood as well, appearing to be more sure of his footing, but the crack in his voice gave him away “Y-you alright now?” His voice was low and gravely. His chest rose and fell at a much quicker pace than Link has previously seen. 

Having a hard time catching his own breath, with his lips slightly parted, Link simply nodded his head. He caught Rhett glance down at his lips, quickly and subtlety. Link thought he might have even seen Rhett’s tongue briefly dart over his lower lip as he turned his body to face the door. 

“I’m gonna go grab my first aid kit,” Rhett stated, as plainly as possible. As he walked out of the room, Link remained hanging onto the desk he had grabbed. 

Once again a word flashed in his mind. Inevitable.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please let me know thoughts in the comments, they're so motivating to me as a newer writer! Feel free to find me on tumblr at maybe-mythical! Thanks again :)


End file.
